Apple iPhone 8 Plus review

GSMArena team,
30 September 2017.

Display

The display on the iPhone 8 Plus is a 5.5" unit with a 1080p resolution (that's 401ppi). It's a LED-backlit IPS LCD screen with RGB matrix, it supports 3D Touch, and has wide color gamut support like last year's.

True Tone is a new addition - it's a white balance adjustment possible via the newly added four-channel ambient light sensor. Once turned on, the True Tone algorithm will correct the screen's white balance according to the ambient light and thus make the picture look its best regardless of the ambient light. That's completely different from the blue-light filter called Night Shift, which reduces the blue colors in the evening hours to help you get a better night's sleep.

The color correction coming from the True Tone adjustment is noticeable when you compare a True Tone-enabled iPhone with a non-True Tone one. It's not a big difference, but arguably it's better for both perception and ease on the eyes. But if you don't have a device for comparison, you won't know what's different.

We did our measurements on the iPhone 8 Plus screen with True Tone turned on, and we got very accurate hues when it comes to color representation. The screen has an average deltaE of 1.3, while the maximum deviation is at the white hue - 4.3. All measured colors except white are well below deltaE of 4, which means the screen has a close to perfect calibration.

Disabling the True Tone adjustment brought the average deltaE up to 2.0, while the white deviation remained the same.

As you can see - True Tone or not - the iPhone 8 Plus display is pretty well calibrated and has a flagship-grade color representation.

As far as HDR content playback goes, things are a bit complicated. From a purely technical standpoint neither the iPhone 8 or the iPhone 8 Plus have HDR displays. That is to say, they do not cover some of the various color and contrast requirements to be certified for HDR10, Dolby Vision and the like. In contrast, the iPhone X does have official certification. However, on both the iPhone 8 Plus and its little siblings specs pages, Apple clearly states: "Supports Dolby Vision and HDR10 content" under video playback.

Apple makes that claim since even without full HDR capabilities, the panels in the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus do manage to render some of the extended visual features of HDR content. So, it's not exactly certifiable HDR grade quality. Then again, HDR has kind of a broad definition to begin with. The thing that will matter most from a user standpoint is that Apple has already convinced Netflix to grant the two iPhones access to its HDR library. And since it is currently, more or less the definitive source for HDR video, on a practical level, there isn't really much to complain about here.

Dragging the brightness slider all the way up allows for a maximum brightness of 530 nits. The black levels are about the average and the iPhone 8 Plus delivered the promised screen contrast of 1300:1. You can achieve an even higher brightness of 620 nits if the phone detects bright sunlight - it's an automatic adjustment to help you see better outdoors.

Display test

100% brightness

Black, cd/m2

White, cd/m2

Contrast ratio

Apple iPhone 8 Plus (True Tone)

0.392

530

1352

Apple iPhone 8 Plus (Standard)

0.392

530

1352

Apple iPhone 8 Plus (Max Auto)

0.471

621

1318

Apple iPhone 7 Plus

0.41

573

1398

Apple iPhone 7 Plus (max auto)

0.50

681

1362

Huawei Mate 9

0.41

665

1622

Samsung Galaxy S8

0

440

∞

Samsung Galaxy S8 Max auto

0

618

∞

LG V30

0.002

414

207000

LG V30 (Max Auto)

0.032

616

19250

Sony Xperia XZ1

0.409

575

1406

Sony Xperia XZ Premium

0.463

573

1238

LG G6

0.228

468

2053

LG G6 max auto

0.277

564

2036

Huawei P10 Plus

0.335

547

1633

Nokia 8

0.382

703

1840

OnePlus 5

0

435

∞

We should mention Apple has buried the auto brightness toggle deep in the accessibility settings so finding it is not easy. By default, the brightness is always on.

In our sunlight legibility test the Apple iPhone 8 Plus posted an excellent contrast ratio beating most other LCD panel we have tested to date and on par with quite a few AMOLEDs out there. It matched the iPhone 7, while noticeably improved since the iPhone 7 Plus.

Sunlight contrast ratio

Samsung Galaxy S84.768

Samsung Galaxy S8+4.658

Samsung Galaxy S6 edge+4.615

Motorola Moto Z2 Play4.459

Oppo R114.454

Samsung Galaxy S7 edge4.439

OnePlus 34.424

Samsung Galaxy S74.376

HTC One A94.274

Samsung Galaxy Note74.247

Samsung Galaxy A34.241

Nokia 84.239

OnePlus 3T4.232

Google Pixel XL4.164

ZTE Axon 74.154

Samsung Galaxy Note84.148

Meizu Pro 7 Plus4.147

Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)4.124

Samsung Galaxy S6 edge4.124

Samsung Galaxy Note54.09

LG V304.022

Huawei Nexus 6P4.019

OnePlus X3.983

Vivo Xplay5 Elite3.983

Apple iPhone 73.964

Oppo R7s3.964

Apple iPhone 83.957

Huawei P9 Plus3.956

Meizu Pro 6 Plus3.935

Lenovo Moto Z3.931

Samsung Galaxy A7 (2016)3.918

OnePlus 53.914

Samsung Galaxy C53.911

Samsung Galaxy C73.896

Samsung Galaxy A53.895

Samsung Galaxy J7 outdoor3.879

Samsung Galaxy J2 outdoor3.873

Samsung Galaxy A83.859

Sony Xperia XZs3.818

Samsung Galaxy A9 (2016)3.817

Motorola Moto X (2014)3.816

Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)3.812

Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)3.804

Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) outdoor mode3.802

LG V20 Max auto3.798

Xiaomi Redmi Pro3.798

Sony Xperia XZ3.795

Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016)3.789

Apple iPhone 6s3.783

Meizu Pro 53.781

Microsoft Lumia 6503.772

Xiaomi Mi 63.767

Sony Xperia XZ13.765

Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016)3.756

Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact3.729

Apple iPhone 8 Plus3.725

Oppo F1 Plus3.709

Vivo X5Pro3.706

Sony Xperia X Compact3.694

Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017)3.688

Apple iPhone SE3.681

Huawei Mate 93.68

Samsung Galaxy A73.679

Meizu PRO 63.659

BlackBerry Priv3.645

Sony Xperia XA1 Ultra3.597

Apple iPhone 7 Plus3.588

LG G63.556

Apple iPhone 6s Plus3.53

Motorola Moto Z Play3.526

Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016)3.523

Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016) outdoor mode3.523

Acer Jade Primo3.521

Microsoft Lumia 9503.512

Oppo R7 Plus3.499

nubia Z113.466

Huawei P10 Plus3.456

HTC U Ultra3.453

Samsung Galaxy J73.422

Meizu MX53.416

LG V203.402

Huawei P103.379

Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016)3.378

Oppo R9s3.352

Honor 8 Pro3.341

Oppo R73.32

Lenovo P23.316

Honor 93.289

Xiaomi Mi 5s3.276

Nokia 53.261

Nokia 6 (Chinese version)3.244

Xiaomi Mi 53.24

Nokia 6 (Global version)3.238

Samsung Galaxy J23.235

Sony Xperia X Performance3.234

Xiaomi Mi Note 23.228

Motorola Moto X Play3.222

Oppo F3 Plus3.218

Huawei Mate 9 Pro3.206

Huawei P93.195

ZTE Nubia Z173.159

Lenovo Vibe Shot3.113

Motorola Moto X Force3.105

LG Nexus 5X3.092

HTC U113.089

Huawei Mate S3.073

Microsoft Lumia 640 XL3.065

Sony Xperia XA13.012

Sony Xperia L12.994

Sony Xperia X2.989

Huawei P10 Lite2.974

Samsung Galaxy Note2.97

Sony Xperia Z12.95

Huawei Mate 82.949

Xiaomi Redmi 42.92

Xiaomi Redmi 3S2.913

Sony Xperia XA Ultra2.906

LG G52.905

HTC One S2.901

Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime2.893

Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus2.884

Sony Xperia XZ Premium2.877

Sony Xperia XZ Premium (sRGB)2.877

Sony Xperia Z52.876

Nokia 32.871

Microsoft Lumia 5502.851

Lenovo Moto M2.813

Xiaomi Redmi 3 Pro2.803

Sony Xperia Z5 compact2.784

Meizu MX62.751

LG V102.744

Xiaomi Redmi 32.735

Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)2.714

Meizu M52.71

Sony Xperia M52.69

Xiaomi Redmi 4 Prime2.679

Huawei P9 Lite2.679

Vivo V3Max2.659

Xiaomi Mi Mix2.658

Doogee Mix2.642

Xiaomi Mi 4i2.641

Xiaomi Redmi 4a2.635

Xiaomi Mi 5X (Standard)2.616

Sony Xperia XA2.609

Motorola Moto G4 Plus2.582

Motorola Moto G4 Plus (max auto)2.582

Meizu M5s2.58

Xiaomi Mi 4c2.574

LeEco Le Max 22.567

Asus Zenfone 3 ZE552KL2.563

Microsoft Lumia 6402.563

Xiaomi Mi Max 22.561

Lenovo K6 Note2.544

Lenovo Moto G42.544

Oppo F12.528

Sony Xperia Z5 Premium2.525

Huawei Honor 7 Lite / Honor 5c2.506

Sony Xperia M4 Aqua2.503

Oppo F1s2.481

Motorola Moto G2.477

Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus2.473

Huawei G82.471

Huawei nova2.467

Sony Xperia Z2.462

Lenovo Vibe K52.459

Meizu m3 max2.447

Xiaomi Mi 5X (Auto)2.417

HTC 10 evo2.407

Huawei Honor 72.406

Sony Xperia E52.386

ZUK Z1 by Lenovo2.382

HTC 102.378

Oppo F32.376

vivo V5 Plus2.371

Meizu m1 note2.362

Huawei nova plus2.329

HTC One E9+2.305

Alcatel One Touch Hero2.272

Apple iPhone 4S2.269

Lenovo Vibe K4 Note2.254

Sony Xperia C5 Ultra2.253

Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (MediaTek)2.249

Sony Xperia C4 Dual2.235

Xiaomi Mi Note2.234

Motorola Moto G (2014)2.233

LG Nexus 52.228

Huawei P82.196

Meizu M5 Note2.189

Huawei Honor 62.169

Xiaomi Redmi Note 22.166

OnePlus Two2.165

HTC One X2.158

LG Aka2.145

Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (X20)2.145

Archos 50 Diamond2.134

Xiaomi Redmi Note2.119

Xiaomi Mi 4S2.095

Acer Liquid X22.084

Huawei P8lite2.078

vivo V52.059

Moto G 3rd gen max manual2.026

Xiaomi Mi 32.001

Xiaomi Mi Max1.996

Sony Xperia E4g1.972

OnePlus One1.961

Meizu m3 note1.923

BlackBerry Leap1.892

Meizu m2 note1.892

HTC Butterfly1.873

Sony Xperia Z1 Compact1.772

ZTE Nubia Z9 mini1.759

Sony Xperia U1.758

Asus Zenfone Selfie1.68

Motorola Moto E (2nd Gen)1.675

ZTE Nubia Z91.659

Motorola Moto E1.545

Sony Xperia M1.473

Sony Xperia L1.351

Xiaomi Redmi 21.311

HTC Desire C1.3

Sony Xperia C1.283

Meizu MX1.221

Sony Xperia E1.215

Battery life

The iPhone 8 Plus is equipped with a non-removable Li-Po 2,691 mAh battery, which is about 7% smaller than the one of the iPhone 7 Plus. But there is a new energy-efficient Apple A11 Bionic chip, which combined with the new battery and optimized iOS 11, should offer same battery life as before.

And in case you need your phone by the end of its charge, the Low-Power mode, which you can enable manually, should prolong your iPhone 8 Plus battery life once the charge drops below 20%.

The iPhone 8 Plus ships with a regular 5V/1A charger plug that replenish 20% of a dead battery in 30 mins. If you own a 29W MacBook charger, you will be able to fast charge 50% of an empty battery in half an hour.

We also tested the iPhone 8 Plus on a Qi-compatible Samsung wireless fast charger - it recharged 17% in 30 mins.

The iPhone 8 Plus posted balanced scores across the board - it can do about 17 hours of 3G calls, 12 and a half hours of web browsing on a single charge, or you can watch videos for about 15 hours. The standby endurance turned out above average and thus the very good endurance rating of 81 hours isn't a surprise (a few hours more than the 7 Plus).

Our endurance rating estimates how long a single battery charge will last you if you use the iPhone 8 Plus for an hour each of telephony, web browsing, and video playback daily. We've established this usage pattern so our battery results are comparable across devices in the most common day-to-day tasks. The battery testing procedure is described in detail in case you're interested in the nitty-gritties. You can also check out our complete battery test table, where you can see how all of the smartphones we've tested will compare under your own typical use.

Connectivity

The Apple iPhone 8 Plus comes with a bunch of wireless connectivity features. Some of the Apple iPhone 8 Plus models come with the latest Qualcomm modem with support for fast LTE Cat. 16 (up to 1Gbps down, 150Mbps up), while others have the latest Intel baseband with LTE Cat. 12 (up to 600Mbps down, 150Mbps up). No matter which model is intended for your market, the LTE will cap at Cat. 12 meaning 600Mbps uplink. Whether this was done for the sake of fairness or not, that's what it is. At least all the models have one of the widest LTE band coverage we've seen. Regular 2G and 3G connectivity are all safely covered as well with a multitude of supported network bands.

The iPhone 8 Plus also supports the latest Voice over LTE (VoLTE), HD Voice and Wi-Fi calling protocols, but those are carrier dependent features so not everyone will get to enjoy them.

There is also support for NFC and thanks to iOS 11's new Core NFC API, the reader's functionality works for NFC tag reading besides Apple Pay. The iPhone 8 Plus supports reading any NDEF formatted tag but only within an app, which can read and take action. This last requirement makes us doubtful whether this also means the iPhones will now be able to make use of the NFC-assisted pairing to various wireless peripherals and accessories, which Android users have been enjoying for ages. Unfortunately, we didn't have one handy to try it out, but we'll update this section when we grab hold of more info.

The iPhone 8 Plus uses a proprietary Lightning connector for wired data transfers, charging, and audio. There is limited USB Host support - you can attach some certified accessories or access your digital camera storage via proprietary adapters sold separately. You can pair a Bluetooth keyboard to the phone should you need this sort of peripheral.

Now that there is no 3.5mm audio jack on board the phone, you can use the provided Lightning-to-3.5mm adapter to continue using your favorite pair of wired headphones with the iPhone. Or buy some very expensive inhouse or third-party wireless headphones, if you will.

Finally, the iPhone 8 Plus supports wireless charging through every run-of-the-mill Qi-compatible charger. It's refreshing to see Apple comply with an established industry standard for once.